Stop the war on fun in San Francisco!

We've been meaning to write about this for a while, but then we just came across the following blog post from Nightlifewars that puts it all in perspective quite well. We've re-posted it here in its entirety:

This one night at the DNA Lounge...

Last Saturday my hubby and I decided to drop in on Bootie SF's triumphant return to the DNA Lounge. We got dropped off by a friend, and noticed two odd things: first, several police cars parked in front of Butter, and lots of officers on the street. The next thing I noticed was that there was no line at the DNA, even though it was midnight, prime time for people to show up for Bootie. Knowing what I know is going on with SF nightlife, I just chalked it up to some SFPD BS. Sure enough, a quick check of the DNA Lounge blog told me the whole ugly story. The DNA is in for weekly harassment, Butter got shut down, and the cops also pestered the patrons of Mist down the street. Officer Larry Bertrand waved his proverbial nightstick around, and evidently intends to keep doing so till all the clubs on 11th Street are driven out of business.

I've testified in front of the board of supervisors on this issue, and now I have written to the mayor as well. Mayor Newsom calls San Francisco an event-positive city. Evidently, Larry Bertrand and the SFPD are attempting to prove him wrong. Here is what I said to Mayor Newsom. If you are reading this, please write to him as well.

"Hi Mayor Newsom,
I will get to the point quickly. Why are the SFPD officers conducting Gestapo tactics at some of the best-run nightclubs and bars in San Francisco? What on Earth is happening in South of Market? Is there anything you can do to reign in Officer Larry Bertrand's one-man campaign to kill nightlife in San Francisco? How do tourists who have heard of Bootie, or other world-class nightclub entertainment in SF, react when the see a police mob? NOT SPEND MONEY is what. What's more, why do I even know Officer Bertrand's name? The horror stories I have heard of his tromping on the Constitutional rights of both patrons and club owners is chilling. And where the hell was Officer Bertrand during the Suede club killing? No doubt harassing clubs South of Market.

Are you powerless in the situation, or do you simply not care? Do you really want the death-knell of nightlife in San Francisco to be your lasting legacy to the city as mayor? Don't talk to me about Suede. Badly-run clubs that tolerate thugs are going to have such problems.  But the DNA? Slim's? Butter? What is particularly fiendish about the targeting of the DNA is that they are a very gay-friendly nightclub and provide a safe and fun environment to dance and have fun after 10pm. If this is the way a place like DNA gets treated, (i.e., police harassment and weekly "sidewalk-blocking" tickets that get thrown out by a judge), what hope is there for the other legitimate nightlife businesses in San Francisco?

Please do something. We need leadership from the Mayor's office on this. 

Sincerely,"

A+D interviewed in SF Weekly's "Hey DJ!" column

 Bootie's creators and DJs Adrian & Mysterious D got a nice little interview in this week's SF Weekly "Hey DJ!" column.

As the writer succinctly puts it: "On the eve of their red-themed Valentine's Day party, A Plus D teach us about making the perfect mashup, crafting a successful club night, and falling in love with classic rock through freshly mashed singles."

Check it out here!

Bootie Top 10 - February 2010

We skipped the month of January, since we had just put out the Best of Bootie 2009 CD. But damn, there was such an abundance of good material these past two months, that we easily could have put together a Top 20 instead of a Top 10! But we're just gonna save the rest for March... Right-click to download!

A Plus D - Don't You Want My Bad Romance (Lady Gaga vs. Human League) - San Francisco
We knew we were taking a gamble when we went ahead and put this on the "Best of Bootie 2009" CD -- barely a week before the end of year! Sure, call us biased ... but fortunately, we've been getting tons of great feedback and reports of hearing this track in clubs and at parties everywhere! Lady Gaga goes New Wave! And it sounds like both artists need some serious relationship counselling. :-)

DJ Jay-R of C.H.A.O.S. Productions - Ke$ha Just Wants To Have Fun (Ke$ha vs. Cyndi Lauper) - Oakland
Just listen to the lyrics of Ke$ha's "Tik Tok," and really, isn't is basically just a raunchier, more updated version of "Girls Just Wanna Have Fun" anyway? This track is fun, flirty, and ready to rock the party. A much-welcome comeback for Oakland's own DJ Jay-R.

Jeff Jones - Party In The Empire State (Jay-Z & Alicia Keys vs. Miley Cyrus) - Boston
For our first Bootie NYC party in three months, we just KNEW we had to drop a mashup of the instantly-iconic "Empire State of Mind." Only one problem ... there weren't that many out there! But mere minutes before we left for the party, we found this simple-yet-effective A+B. And let's face it, with Miley name-dropping Jay-Z, coupled with the whole "hands up" vibe of both songs, these two were obviously meant to be together!
NEW YORK CITY BONUS TRACK!
Purple Crush - NYC Bad Girl Lovegame (Purple Crush vs. Lady Gaga) - Los Angeles
We're feeling the love with New York lately, perhaps due to the fact that we unexpectedly had our biggest Bootie party ever there -- over 840 people! It was crazy, so we're throwing in an NYC-inspired bonus track, created by Purple Crush, a Brooklyn-based electro duo who recently moved to LA. We love it when artists mash up their own tunes!

The Kleptones - Cubikini (Bikini Kill vs. 808 State) - Brighton, UK
From the album Upside/Downtime
This is the soundtrack of our lives back in the early '90s, where a typical weekend might consist of going to see a Riot Grrrl girl band play at some trashy punk club down the street, before heading out to an all-night rave in a warehouse on the outskirts of town. Did The Kleptones do the same thing? We love hearing surprising and rarely (if ever) used source material in a mashup, such as Bikini Kill's "Rebel Girl."

DJ Le Clown - Billie Bootie Lazer (Michael Jackson vs. Major Lazer) - Paris
For the record, Adrian HATES Major Lazer, finding its bloops and bleets incredibly annoying. D, on the other hand, loves the crazy sampling sounds and ridiculous rhythms. But here, we find some middle ground, as MJ gives a jolt of familiar melodicism to the modern, oh-so-hipster, "lazer" sound.

MadMixMustang - Is This Digital Love? (Bob Marley vs. Daft Punk) - The Netherlands
Here's another mashup that we like, in spite of its source material. Neither one of us are especially big fans of reggae -- but Daft Punk sounds so shockingly well-suited paired up with Bob Marley, taking an electronic jam and turning it into anthem of love and unity. It's the dance floor equivalent of "warm fuzzies."

Marc Johnce - Mr. Crowley Might Like It Louder (Ozzy Osbourne vs. Dada, Obernik & Harris vs. Amanda Blank vs. Major Lazer) - Germany
We love it when hard rock artists from the '80s get the electro-dance bootleg treatment, especially when they sound as bangin' as this. How awesome is Ozzy's "Mr. Crowley" for a dark Electro-Bootie set? Dude, it rocks.

Mashup-Germany - Sexy Bitch In Memphis (Akon vs. Justin Timberlake vs. Robyn vs. The Eagles vs. Cher vs. David Guetta) - Germany
Can rap lyrics get any more shallow and ridiculous? What's left to do but take them and mash them up with other artists, both probable (Hi, Justin!) and highly unlikely (OMG, the Eagles!). A nice multi-mash from hot newcomer Mashup-Germany.

DJ Morgoth - Any Way You Want My Woman (Journey vs. Wolfmother vs. MSTRKRFT) - Berlin
Wherein, Bootie Berlin's own DJ Morgoth discovers the awesomeness of a classic American arena rock band from the '80s by mashing up a song of theirs that came out before he was even born! See? Journey's music really is the new Great American Songbook! And it sounds hot mashed-up with the Aussie retro-rock of Wolfmother remixed into a sexy groove by hipster heroes MSTRKRFT. Both these bands love the ladies ... it's oh-so-rock-n-roll!

Winkar Lopez - Shots (Hands Up Bootleg) (LMFAO feat. Lil Jon vs. Winkar Lopez) - Mexico City
As unapologetic and unironic fans of MTV's "Jersey Shore," we have a soft spot for LMFAO, who not only did the show's theme song, but whose commercial for "Shots" practically became the show's OTHER theme song. Winkar Lopez's bootleg remix will have you "beating up the beat" and fist-pumping like a true guido! "Shotshotshotsshotshots... EVERYBODY!!!"

AND IN CASE YOU'VE BEEN LIVING UNDER A ROCK:
DJ Earworm - United State of Pop 2009 (Blame It On The Pop) (Mashup of the Top 25 Hit Songs of 2009 According to Billboard Magazine) - San Francisco
What can we say that we haven't already? Mashup of the year, literally. This should be put in a time capsule for 2009. It's got over 10 million views on YouTube, it was listed as #1 on the "Must List" in Entertainment Weekly, and Earworm was profiled on CNN.com. It's an epic tour de force that, with its widespread mainstream attention, doesn't just elevate the mashup artform -- it takes it to a new level of legitimacy. Bravo!